Samsung confirms high-end Tizen phone

Much has been made of Samsung’s Android success and some punters believe the Korean giant will soon be in a position to ditch Google and come up with a competitive OS of its own, or a heavily customized version of Android. [Isn’t TouchWiz exactly that? Ed]

Now it seems Samsung could introduce the first Tizen-based smartphone as early as August or September. Lee Young Hee, executive vice president of Samsung’s mobile business, told Bloomberg that the phone will be the “best product with the best specifications” and it will end up in the high end category.

At the moment there are no Tizen phones and the app ecosystem could be an issue. However, since Tizen is a true open source platform, this could change in a heartbeat. It does sound a bit unusual that Samsung is going after the high end market with its first Tizen device, but it might just be a way of showing its commitment to the new platform.

It is still unclear how many Tizen phones Samsung hopes to shift. Even with its seemingly endless marketing budget, Samsung might have a hard time convincing consumers that they need yet another competing mobile platform.